babs ✨
@itsbabs.bsky.social
artist 📸 + activist / have lupus, studying the spectacularization of hydroxychloroquine / just trying to have a nice time On The Internet™️ / she/they #DoMaskBlocShit 😷🦋🍐🏳️🌈
tiktok/twitter: @babs_zone
elsewhere: https://bio.site/amphoto
tiktok/twitter: @babs_zone
elsewhere: https://bio.site/amphoto
Pinned
babs ✨
@itsbabs.bsky.social
· Aug 5
are you so over wildfire smoke? allergies? this getting covid repeatedly thing? protect yourself with filtered air!
•Bonafide Masks
•WellBefore
•Dräger
•BeHealthy
•Laianzhi
•BNX
•3M
•MaskC
•CambridgeMask
*buying directly from distributors (some use amazon)=best way to avoid less than quality product
•Bonafide Masks
•WellBefore
•Dräger
•BeHealthy
•Laianzhi
•BNX
•3M
•MaskC
•CambridgeMask
*buying directly from distributors (some use amazon)=best way to avoid less than quality product
Reposted by babs ✨
icymi or need a refresh: clean air organizers in LA got more than 300,000 respirators across the southland in the days n weeks as the fires burned, as well as air purifiers, covid tests, & whatever other tools we could get our hands on.
many of us were doing that work before too, & still are today.
many of us were doing that work before too, & still are today.
…let alone see if there are, say, folks, groups—maybe even a network of groups—leading the way on clean air & disease prevention bc they’ve been doing it for years 🤔
in the absence of formal leadership & the breakdown of regulations from climate to health, we must utilize all other available tools.
in the absence of formal leadership & the breakdown of regulations from climate to health, we must utilize all other available tools.
August 27, 2025 at 7:20 PM
icymi or need a refresh: clean air organizers in LA got more than 300,000 respirators across the southland in the days n weeks as the fires burned, as well as air purifiers, covid tests, & whatever other tools we could get our hands on.
many of us were doing that work before too, & still are today.
many of us were doing that work before too, & still are today.
Reposted by babs ✨
thinking about all the people who i’ve learned to invent a better from the worse with as we’ve been abandoned these pandemic years and oh, what a road trip of its own it’s been.
![cover image for “them”
“These Are the Drag Artists and Organizers Fighting to Make Queer Spaces More COVID Safe”
[image of drag king manny oakley (a tall latinx cowboy) weaving through a mostly masked outdoor crowd at sunset under string lights in their cowboy hat and leather outfit.]
BY MILES GRIFFIS, THE SICK TIMES
Photo by Abby Mahler](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:reatxkwxwfh2osvbkbxyjktg/bafkreibipybikzvg7uyia4tq34uz4czkcxblqknswcpsyjpullf3s2resa@jpeg)
May 12, 2025 at 2:40 AM
thinking about all the people who i’ve learned to invent a better from the worse with as we’ve been abandoned these pandemic years and oh, what a road trip of its own it’s been.
Reposted by babs ✨
not a month before zickgraf apparently took inspiration for this weeks piece, mask bloc LA—just one of many global anticovid groups primarily made up of chronically ill & disabled people—announced they’d distributed nearly 300k free masks while their city burned. but better they were at a bar right?
November 25, 2025 at 9:37 PM
not a month before zickgraf apparently took inspiration for this weeks piece, mask bloc LA—just one of many global anticovid groups primarily made up of chronically ill & disabled people—announced they’d distributed nearly 300k free masks while their city burned. but better they were at a bar right?
Reposted by babs ✨
ascribing cult-like behavior to people, many who are disabled, who have no desire to risk debility/illness from nonessential activities when ample options exist outside bars/restaurants to be safely in community with people reveals both a profound lack of imagination and a desiccated set of values.
I don’t know, I thought after Long Covid effectively ended my chance at a directing career, ruined my health, my energy, my ability to eat a lot of foods, and my body, it would seem pretty obvious why I don’t want to get it again, even going so far as to sacrifice (the horror!) bars and restaurants.
November 25, 2025 at 11:20 PM
ascribing cult-like behavior to people, many who are disabled, who have no desire to risk debility/illness from nonessential activities when ample options exist outside bars/restaurants to be safely in community with people reveals both a profound lack of imagination and a desiccated set of values.
Reposted by babs ✨
This year, I'm truly thankful for the reporting I'm able to do, although it's impossible to stay on top of the news cycle, and for all the people willing to speak to me for my disability articles.
November 25, 2025 at 9:04 PM
This year, I'm truly thankful for the reporting I'm able to do, although it's impossible to stay on top of the news cycle, and for all the people willing to speak to me for my disability articles.
Reposted by babs ✨
I’m still thinking of the audacity of writing a piece basically entitled “GET A LOAD OF THESE NUTCASES” and then nobly telling the world you will endeavor to endure the “harassment”, ideally with a tear in one eye.
Also the dude regretfully posted on Twitter that he’s bracing for “a wave of harassment” for the piece. Absolute crybully behavior. I’m sure the 600 followers his little zine site has on Bluesky will take up arms for him.
November 25, 2025 at 10:31 PM
I’m still thinking of the audacity of writing a piece basically entitled “GET A LOAD OF THESE NUTCASES” and then nobly telling the world you will endeavor to endure the “harassment”, ideally with a tear in one eye.
fascinating paper. if it confirms anything for me, it’s that the immune system is fuckin complicated and we’re still learning so much. like how does this square with better symptom responses to novavax over mrna is just one query that came to mind, among many, as a tattooed autoimmune reader.
New @pnas.org
"This work represents the most extensive study to
date regarding the effect of tattoo ink on the immune response and raises serious health concerns associated with the tattooing" including reduced response to Covid vaccination
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
"This work represents the most extensive study to
date regarding the effect of tattoo ink on the immune response and raises serious health concerns associated with the tattooing" including reduced response to Covid vaccination
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Tattoo ink induces inflammation in the draining lymph node and alters the immune response to vaccination | PNAS
Despite safety concerns regarding the toxicity of tattoo ink, no studies have reported
the consequences of tattooing on the immune response. In thi...
www.pnas.org
November 25, 2025 at 10:41 PM
fascinating paper. if it confirms anything for me, it’s that the immune system is fuckin complicated and we’re still learning so much. like how does this square with better symptom responses to novavax over mrna is just one query that came to mind, among many, as a tattooed autoimmune reader.
Reposted by babs ✨
This is your annual reminder not to donate to the Salvation Army because they are aggressively anti LGBTQIA+
November 25, 2025 at 10:00 PM
This is your annual reminder not to donate to the Salvation Army because they are aggressively anti LGBTQIA+
Reposted by babs ✨
1/ ⚠️ Breaking: At CDC, we've been told the US Government will not officially commemorate World AIDS Day this year. No explanation given.
November 25, 2025 at 4:16 PM
1/ ⚠️ Breaking: At CDC, we've been told the US Government will not officially commemorate World AIDS Day this year. No explanation given.
apropos of nothing, shoutout to Ernest Bloch for writing a helluva bass clarinet part in Schelomo
November 25, 2025 at 9:52 PM
apropos of nothing, shoutout to Ernest Bloch for writing a helluva bass clarinet part in Schelomo
not a month before zickgraf apparently took inspiration for this weeks piece, mask bloc LA—just one of many global anticovid groups primarily made up of chronically ill & disabled people—announced they’d distributed nearly 300k free masks while their city burned. but better they were at a bar right?
November 25, 2025 at 9:37 PM
not a month before zickgraf apparently took inspiration for this weeks piece, mask bloc LA—just one of many global anticovid groups primarily made up of chronically ill & disabled people—announced they’d distributed nearly 300k free masks while their city burned. but better they were at a bar right?
Reposted by babs ✨
When we spoke in 2020, Alice Wong wondered if a million Covid deaths would drive Americans to care.
By 2022, a million Americans had died of Covid.
To read the full transcript of this interview, visit tinyurl.com/5ez375t9
By 2022, a million Americans had died of Covid.
To read the full transcript of this interview, visit tinyurl.com/5ez375t9
November 25, 2025 at 5:16 AM
When we spoke in 2020, Alice Wong wondered if a million Covid deaths would drive Americans to care.
By 2022, a million Americans had died of Covid.
To read the full transcript of this interview, visit tinyurl.com/5ez375t9
By 2022, a million Americans had died of Covid.
To read the full transcript of this interview, visit tinyurl.com/5ez375t9
Reposted by babs ✨
I often think about how I can't safely do protest coverage because what if this happens to me and I can't get my meds.
Freelance photojournalist @davedeckerphoto.bsky.social was arrested while reporting on an immigration protest outside an ICE facility in Miami on Nov. 22.
He was held in custody for 30-plus hours and released with charges of trespassing and resisting an officer.
He was held in custody for 30-plus hours and released with charges of trespassing and resisting an officer.
Photojournalist arrested at Miami immigration protest, gear seized
Freelance photojournalist Dave Decker was arrested by Miami-Dade Sheriff’s deputies while documenting anti-deportation protests outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement …
pressfreedomtracker.us
November 25, 2025 at 12:33 AM
I often think about how I can't safely do protest coverage because what if this happens to me and I can't get my meds.
well, they’re consistent.
![bluesky post by UnHerd @unherd.com
[Muted by "Quacks, Cranks, and Liars Block List"]
“'The People's CDC preserved the emotional realities of early 2021' | Ryan Zickgraf
[article: The last of the Covidians
Some people are living in the eternal 2020. Caption: Getty
unherd.com]”
Nov 24, 2025 at 4:00 AM](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:reatxkwxwfh2osvbkbxyjktg/bafkreih5sv6qu6iuqh5ejti3laac4zsvantkwjjn7ylnc26e24zcpuzuya@jpeg)
November 25, 2025 at 5:26 PM
well, they’re consistent.
Reposted by babs ✨
I just gave as part of this match. I tell you the sick times saves lives. It is the best new source on the ongoing pandemic
We're kicking off our biggest fundraiser of the year by participating in NewsMatch, a national campaign to support newsrooms across the US run by the Institute for Nonprofit News.
We need your help to keep telling #LongCOVID stories. Will you donate today? the-sick-times.fundjournalism.org/donate/
We need your help to keep telling #LongCOVID stories. Will you donate today? the-sick-times.fundjournalism.org/donate/
November 24, 2025 at 11:23 PM
I just gave as part of this match. I tell you the sick times saves lives. It is the best new source on the ongoing pandemic
Reposted by babs ✨
Pleased to see several familiar names on @wired.com's list of Great Tech Books, including @ashleyshoo.bsky.social, @margaretomara.bsky.social & @ruha9.bsky.social.
#histSTM #STS
#histtech #BigTech 🗃️📜
#histSTM #STS
#histtech #BigTech 🗃️📜
This is a surprisingly good list of tech books to gift from Wired, including some aged classics and some new work destined to be classics down the line (*cough* @ashleyshoo.bsky.social's book *cough*)
25 Great Tech Books to Gift (or Keep for Yourself)
Give the techie in your life access to the inner workings of the companies and characters shaping Big Tech.
www.wired.com
November 24, 2025 at 9:49 PM
Pleased to see several familiar names on @wired.com's list of Great Tech Books, including @ashleyshoo.bsky.social, @margaretomara.bsky.social & @ruha9.bsky.social.
#histSTM #STS
#histtech #BigTech 🗃️📜
#histSTM #STS
#histtech #BigTech 🗃️📜
where is everyone getting socks that are:
• smooth (ie: not patterned or ribbed, though i can handle a seam)
• thin or minimally padded (will take heel padding, but not elsewhere)
down to one pair of my favorite black socks that don’t let my docs eat my feet, getting desperate
• smooth (ie: not patterned or ribbed, though i can handle a seam)
• thin or minimally padded (will take heel padding, but not elsewhere)
down to one pair of my favorite black socks that don’t let my docs eat my feet, getting desperate
November 25, 2025 at 4:44 PM
where is everyone getting socks that are:
• smooth (ie: not patterned or ribbed, though i can handle a seam)
• thin or minimally padded (will take heel padding, but not elsewhere)
down to one pair of my favorite black socks that don’t let my docs eat my feet, getting desperate
• smooth (ie: not patterned or ribbed, though i can handle a seam)
• thin or minimally padded (will take heel padding, but not elsewhere)
down to one pair of my favorite black socks that don’t let my docs eat my feet, getting desperate
Reposted by babs ✨
Susan Sontag "offered a more apt metaphor than journey, though she ultimately preferred straight, unadorned talk: illness as a place, and often a dark and lonely one, 'the night-side of life' in 'the kingdom of the sick'":
Via @bhanlon15.bsky.social
#LongCOVID
www.statnews.com/2025/11/25/c...
Via @bhanlon15.bsky.social
#LongCOVID
www.statnews.com/2025/11/25/c...
I have long Covid. Don’t call my chronic disease a ‘journey’
A “journey” is something you choose. No one chooses chronic illness.
www.statnews.com
November 25, 2025 at 4:38 PM
Susan Sontag "offered a more apt metaphor than journey, though she ultimately preferred straight, unadorned talk: illness as a place, and often a dark and lonely one, 'the night-side of life' in 'the kingdom of the sick'":
Via @bhanlon15.bsky.social
#LongCOVID
www.statnews.com/2025/11/25/c...
Via @bhanlon15.bsky.social
#LongCOVID
www.statnews.com/2025/11/25/c...
‘“I’m not interested in her incredibly bad writing,” @disabilitystor1.bsky.social said. “Real people are going to become disabled, sick, and die as a consequence of this.” And it could be years before we see the true scale of the damage...”
An important piece that should shake Nuzzi—if she cared.
An important piece that should shake Nuzzi—if she cared.
You won't believe the CRAZIEST part of the Olivia Nuzzi scandal! (My latest) newrepublic.com/article/2035...
Olivia Nuzzi’s Real Victims
More than her fiancé, or fellow female journalists, the public will pay the price for these misdeeds. RFK Jr. will see to that.
newrepublic.com
November 25, 2025 at 4:25 PM
‘“I’m not interested in her incredibly bad writing,” @disabilitystor1.bsky.social said. “Real people are going to become disabled, sick, and die as a consequence of this.” And it could be years before we see the true scale of the damage...”
An important piece that should shake Nuzzi—if she cared.
An important piece that should shake Nuzzi—if she cared.
Reposted by babs ✨
Breaking: Viola Ford Fletcher, the oldest living survivor of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, has died. She was 111 years old
Viola Ford Fletcher, the oldest living survivor of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, has died
Viola Ford Fletcher, the oldest living survivor of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, has died. She was 111 years old.
www.whatimreading.net
November 24, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Breaking: Viola Ford Fletcher, the oldest living survivor of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, has died. She was 111 years old
Reposted by babs ✨
If you don't find our present dire enough to warrant masking, then where is your bar?
Where was it in 2020? 2021? ...2022? .....2023?
When did it shift, & why?
What did you read/who told you something that moved the needle? Does it hold up to scientific or your own moral scrutiny, considering?
Where was it in 2020? 2021? ...2022? .....2023?
When did it shift, & why?
What did you read/who told you something that moved the needle? Does it hold up to scientific or your own moral scrutiny, considering?
October 14, 2025 at 10:53 PM
If you don't find our present dire enough to warrant masking, then where is your bar?
Where was it in 2020? 2021? ...2022? .....2023?
When did it shift, & why?
What did you read/who told you something that moved the needle? Does it hold up to scientific or your own moral scrutiny, considering?
Where was it in 2020? 2021? ...2022? .....2023?
When did it shift, & why?
What did you read/who told you something that moved the needle? Does it hold up to scientific or your own moral scrutiny, considering?
sometimes when i heehee haha about being a social media manager i compare it being the marlboro man
not far off
not far off
Newly unsealed internal communications from Meta reveal senior staff saying Instagram is a drug and "We’re basically pushers."
The new court filing reveals Meta staff allegedly worked for years to obscure the social media platform’s potential dangers from parents and children.
The new court filing reveals Meta staff allegedly worked for years to obscure the social media platform’s potential dangers from parents and children.
November 24, 2025 at 4:26 PM
sometimes when i heehee haha about being a social media manager i compare it being the marlboro man
not far off
not far off
Reposted by babs ✨
WEAR A MASK!!
My hairstylist, who owned her salon, was permanently disabled by long COVID. A client was dishonest about COVID exposure and infected her. She has amazing family to support her, but she had to give up styling and sell her salon bc of her health.
Protect yourself and others!!
My hairstylist, who owned her salon, was permanently disabled by long COVID. A client was dishonest about COVID exposure and infected her. She has amazing family to support her, but she had to give up styling and sell her salon bc of her health.
Protect yourself and others!!
It costs next to nothing to wear a mask
It’s one of the best investments you can make in your long term health
Covid is still here & still disabling
It only takes one infection to change your life forever
Masks, especially N95s, are great protection!
If you can’t afford one try a mask block:
It’s one of the best investments you can make in your long term health
Covid is still here & still disabling
It only takes one infection to change your life forever
Masks, especially N95s, are great protection!
If you can’t afford one try a mask block:
Worldwide Mask Bloc Directory – Find your local Mask Bloc
MaskBloc.org lists active Mask Blocs around the world. Free high-quality masks, COVID-19 tests and other equipment for your community. Mutual Aid & We Keep Us Safe.
maskbloc.org
November 24, 2025 at 3:54 PM
WEAR A MASK!!
My hairstylist, who owned her salon, was permanently disabled by long COVID. A client was dishonest about COVID exposure and infected her. She has amazing family to support her, but she had to give up styling and sell her salon bc of her health.
Protect yourself and others!!
My hairstylist, who owned her salon, was permanently disabled by long COVID. A client was dishonest about COVID exposure and infected her. She has amazing family to support her, but she had to give up styling and sell her salon bc of her health.
Protect yourself and others!!
Reposted by babs ✨
hell yea dude. and for folks reading this who haven’t thought about masking in a while & don’t know where to start, here are a couple brands that i like in the qt, & if you’re looking for free masks near you (or you want to donate free masks), try these resources:
maskbloc.org
covidactionmap.org
maskbloc.org
covidactionmap.org
are you so over wildfire smoke? allergies? this getting covid repeatedly thing? protect yourself with filtered air!
•Bonafide Masks
•WellBefore
•Dräger
•BeHealthy
•Laianzhi
•BNX
•3M
•MaskC
•CambridgeMask
*buying directly from distributors (some use amazon)=best way to avoid less than quality product
•Bonafide Masks
•WellBefore
•Dräger
•BeHealthy
•Laianzhi
•BNX
•3M
•MaskC
•CambridgeMask
*buying directly from distributors (some use amazon)=best way to avoid less than quality product
September 25, 2025 at 4:16 AM
hell yea dude. and for folks reading this who haven’t thought about masking in a while & don’t know where to start, here are a couple brands that i like in the qt, & if you’re looking for free masks near you (or you want to donate free masks), try these resources:
maskbloc.org
covidactionmap.org
maskbloc.org
covidactionmap.org
Reposted by babs ✨
It costs next to nothing to wear a mask
It’s one of the best investments you can make in your long term health
Covid is still here & still disabling
It only takes one infection to change your life forever
Masks, especially N95s, are great protection!
If you can’t afford one try a mask block:
It’s one of the best investments you can make in your long term health
Covid is still here & still disabling
It only takes one infection to change your life forever
Masks, especially N95s, are great protection!
If you can’t afford one try a mask block:
Worldwide Mask Bloc Directory – Find your local Mask Bloc
MaskBloc.org lists active Mask Blocs around the world. Free high-quality masks, COVID-19 tests and other equipment for your community. Mutual Aid & We Keep Us Safe.
maskbloc.org
November 24, 2025 at 5:11 AM
It costs next to nothing to wear a mask
It’s one of the best investments you can make in your long term health
Covid is still here & still disabling
It only takes one infection to change your life forever
Masks, especially N95s, are great protection!
If you can’t afford one try a mask block:
It’s one of the best investments you can make in your long term health
Covid is still here & still disabling
It only takes one infection to change your life forever
Masks, especially N95s, are great protection!
If you can’t afford one try a mask block: